Under stern social rules, women are constantly criticized for not presenting as “proper,” formal, or gentle enough. We are pigeonholed into traditional household, “caretaker” roles, or seen as rude and mean when we disapprove of something. We are afraid to make mistakes, and we are groomed to fear what other people will think of us if we do.

These attitudes, unsurprisingly, have tangible results. A study conducted in 2018 by the Institute for Women’s Policy Research (IWPR) reveals that a woman earned 49 cents for each dollar a man earned from 2001 to 2015.